What should you eat?
“What should I eat?” This is a question that I get a lot. It is understandable. Many of us are continually perplexed by the streams of information and conflicting dietary recommendations. We are looking for something or someone to cut through all of this and just give us a simple answer. This desire to simplify and get direction is widespread. In this global information society it feels like we are expected to be experts in everything from the latest dietary recommendations, to figuring out the best refrigerator to buy. In order to make deciding easier we often outsource these decisions or at least defer to the expertise of others to guide us.
There is an important distinction to be drawn between relying on outside advice to inform the purchase of a consumer good like a refrigerator or printer, and how wer are guided in making ongoing food choices. A decision about a printer can probably be boiled down to a few factors such as: what type of printing do you do? How much money do you have to spend? Etc. When it comes to food choices or really any other decision about how we engage with our bodies - we are experts in our own experience - and we occupy a crucial vantage point with our internal noticing to assess the impacts of the choices we make.
When asked for, I certainly offer information and guidance regarding specific diets and food choices. However, there is nothing inherently empowering about having a food list. In fact, if it becomes just the imposition of an external set of rules that you are trying to apply to your life, but are not a very good fit, it can become a source of frustration or harm. I say this, at the same time recognizing that some folks really dig having a list and being given the “bright line” of what they should and sound not eat. This is not a post about that.
I want to spend a little time reviewing what I call the skills of innrt transformation. This is not a complete list, but these are a few of the crucial elements and perspectives that can support us in engaging in change work - whether this be around diet, some other lifestyle choices, or in our relationships with others.
Clear Intention. What is your why? When people ask me what they should eat I almost immediately follow with another question: What are you hoping your approach to eating will help you achieve? The potential answers to this question are endless. Sure, people may be wanting to address a chronic health condition or lose weight. But maybe their desire is to find ways to simplify meal preparation, eat more local foods, lower their food bill without compromising food quality or some combination of the above. Clarifying intent is an important first step in knowing how to proceed and in also maintaining one’s focus when initiating a new approach to eating.
Self-Observation. If we make a choice that is counter to our intent, it can be helpful to be able to track and observe our internal process. This does not just apply to food choices, but this is what we are considering here. For example: You said that you were planning to cut off eating 3 hours before bed because you have noticed that if you eat late, you do not sleep well? But, after you get off the phone with your mother, you’re peering into the refrigerator and end up having a large plate of leftovers right before bed? What were we thinking or feeling right before you made that choice? Did something about the conversation trigger an emotion that you then felt the desire to soothe (with food). When we are engaged in observation we can bring a sense of openness and curiosity that allows us to think about and imagine other choices. If we go right into shaming and berating ourselves for the choice then we lose the ability to plan to make a different choice in the future. Self-observation practiced when we are not distressed, makes this tool more available to us when we are under stress.
Honoring intuition and cultivating discernment. Intuition is our ability to know things without conscious awareness of how we received this information. This information often presents as a sense or a feeling about something. Many of us do not trust our intuition and therefore do not honor it. To cultivate a relationship with one’s intuitive sense and gain a sense of discernment about when we can trust it, start with engaging it when the stakes are low. If you are out on a walk and get a sense that one direction might be better to take than another, take it and see what happens. Do you encounter something interesting and unexpected? Note it and thank your inner guidance system for leading you down that path. In terms of food - do you have a sense that something you are eating might not be agreeing with you or conversely that a certain food might be very good for you at this time? Make the change (on a trial basis) and observe what happens. Honoring one’s intuition is a 2-step process, both making the choice to follow its direction and then noting the outcome of that decision.
These are some of the ‘skills’ of inner transformation that can serve all of us on our personal and collective paths to healing. Making sure that these tools are engaged and online will increase the likelihood of making empowered and sustainable change - that goes far beyond what any food list can provide.
